SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums College, Pro & International Soccer 4A State Game and Players

I know yall will probably all hate me for putting this on high school soccer post but i wasnt sure if i would get any responses by putting it on the college, pro bulletin.....

do you think any of the players we saw on the pitch last night have a real opportunity to play professional soccer and for possibly a better league than the MLS?

none

Honestly, right now, heck not.

If you read my last post in the HS forum, you will find out one of the reasons.

High School level is just not any good, is great for fans and for the news and the hype but the level sucks compared to clubs.

If somehow people can change the hs thing into premier d1 and stuff then it will be different.

If any of this kids wants to play pro, they need to seriously start thinking on moving to a city with an MLS Franchise, or moving to Europe or down south.

First, the HS level change would be done.

2. We need a pld or usl2 team in columbia to delope the players the proper way.

3. I heard about 2 s. aiken players training for the Batter, is any SC native player currenty playin for the battery?

How many SC native players the battery ever had?

I know some guys who played pdl during the last summer season, with some of their college teammates but that was in rhode island and not in the plametto state, (charleston, columbia or greenville)

thanks for your thoughts alma merengue, i know their is one in augusta and atlanta and a few in nc, and that where sc players go, im not sure if theyre are any sc high schoolers or former college players from sc playing for the battery

John Wilson (Seneca, SC/Seneca High/Clemson) is in his second stint with the Battery. He played here, then left for DC United and the Rochester Rhinos before returning.

Troy Lesene (Columbia/B-C High/C of C) played for the Battery a few years ago. There was one other player from C of C that I thought played for the Battery but I can't remember his name.

As I have said for years, there is bad club soccer out there and yes you can play high school soccer and still be a good player. There are too many unfounded negative sterotypes about high school soccer. Most people think that if you play club soccer you are #1 good, #2 play for the best club and #3 have a free pass to college and pro soccer. Just b/c you play club soccer does not make you a great player nor does it mean that college coaches will come knocking your door down.

And yes, there is such a thing as a good high school soccer game and good high school soccer tournaments. They do not rival the Dallas Cup, Jefferson Cup, Surf Cup, Regionals, etc but neither do typical club tournaments or games. While I did not stick around to watch later state championship games, I bet that Riverside/Chapin last year, Northwestern/Spring Valley last year and NW/Irmo this year were better games than a typical club game.

Keith Wiggens (College of Charleston) is also currently playing for the Battery.

Ben Hollingsworth (C of C) was who I was thinking of before. He played for the Battery and then played for a team in Isreal.

Jason Getz (Lander Univ.) played two or three season for the Battery.

let see, if you are a club player and you play premier or let say challenge.

you have how many games on the season? how many of those games are quality games?

now, you have irmo, beating one his closest rivals df 9-1, wow, sounds great.

irmo and nw had 2 real games the whole season, are you serious?

anywhere in the world, clubs wait for you to get out of high school to sign the contract, if are not at least in the reserves when you are done with hs you are most likely to end up playing second division, the pro game is too competitive.

in the US, you wait till you finish college, when are 22 years old to take soccer serious... by them, messi has already 2 european championships, 1 fifa player of the year and is ready to fight for the number one spot in the world cup.

im not saying kids should not play high school or college soccer, im saying, you have to better the level of both of them, the american kids are light years behind the real soccer world.

send one of those clemson kids to the reserves of Boca or Corinthians and you would see what im talking about.

we dont go too far, not even mls is developing kids to play in the world level, think of Altidore at Villareal.

High School and college soccer could be a great way to develop great players but we have to change the whole system if you want to make things happend.

Why don't the best American youth players leave the US when they are 15 and head to Europe? Can't they play in West Ham's academy program and continue their secondary school education in England?

Why even bother playing "academy" in the US if your real goal is professional soccer?

Think about it. Instead of mom and dad shelling out thousands of dollars so the kid can "live the dream", why not send him abroad where a professional club can cover his training expenses and determine in a short period of time if the kid really has what it takes?

I think college soccer here is where kids lose the most ground, i agree completely with yall about that

it should be dissolved to make way for more acadmey play like the pdl and usl teams we were talking about on the other post, if we start focusing more on development and skill than we will grow as football nation and start to have talented and athletic squads like the ones of europe and south america

If i hear you correctly, your argument has two points... better quality games and better player development.

Player development is a sticky one b/c it means that parents and coaches of young players must think more about teaching the game vs. winning.

There was a great idea thrown out seeveral years ago about forming four division based on winning percantage over the past 10-15 years. After the initial year, there would be a promotion/relegation system. This would at least get the best teams playing together, but that concept would have almost no chance of passing.

The other thought is to do away with the concept of "regions". Let teams schedule whoever they want. This would do away with some of the massive blowouts that usually occur b/c two teams have to play each other. 4A and 3A teams would then apply for the playoffs much like 2A and 1A do now.

I personally think that Altidore's development is hampered by his decision b/c now is on the bench for a lesser team... look at what happened to Tim Howard when he went to Man U and his rise once he got playing time at Everton.

thanks for mentionaing altidore, why does he sit on the bench at zerex or whatver? He played for Villareal which i think are 4th or 5th in la liga and he cant even get a game for a team in segunda?

doing away with regions is a great idea i neevr really though about that... i like to see when teams schedule hard opponents and may not have the best records but are defiantely tested like dreher, chapin, cardinal newman, wando...all these teams obviously didnt have similar seasons but definately got better becuase of out of region play

this is just what i think.

Altidore went from a much slower en physical MLS to a ligue where you have the most skilled players in the world, it was going to take prob another 5 years for him to be at the same level as most of the south american attacking players on la liga.

The transition from MLS to La liga is just too much I think, maybe playing a little for some small teams in England, then going to Spain would have been a little better.

Developing a winning main or the other one?

How about developing a professional mind since kids?

Like I said, if you have a premier team focused on "winning" but the kid knows he would have to move somewhere else to make it pro, then that is not really going to create great players.

The American player is too focused on EPL, they dont even watch mls, dont know anything on South American soccer which is another powerhouse with Brazil and Argentina out there.

The few Americans that cannot make it to EPL, La Liga, Il Calcio, or Bundesliga should be looking at Boca, River, Sao Paolo or Corinthians instead of going to crappy teams in Denmark.

Why not going to Mexican soccer? Clubs like America or Cruz Azul pay great and they go to Copa Libertadores every year to chanllenge South American big clubs.

the american kid that can afford it, should def go to camps with Milan, Madrid, Barca, ManU and real clubs around the world, also to south america to experience real soccer environment.

the american that cant afford traveling to europe, or south american should at least try to make it to DC United Games or even the Battery.

Most Americans just know how difficult is going to be making pro even in their own country, not to mention making it in other countries where soccer has much more tradition and is culturally a religion.

If I was 16, in high school and I knew I had some skill, I would be talking already to USL, PDL and even MLS assistant coaches already at the same time I talk to college coaches.

I should be already getting info on how to get a european agent if my dream is to go to try out to europe and I need somebody to fund my trip.

I dont think the best idea would be move to europe bc is not as easy as it sounds but yes, going out there to try out and finding out how the whole thing works would be great, sp if you parents have the money for you to do it.

I think some of the issue has to deal with options. Kids here have tremendous options to play football, basketball, baseball, etc. I know England, Ireland, etc have other popular sports such as rugby and cricket, but soccer rules there. Even in Spain where basketball is gaining ground, soccer still reigns supreme. Here (especially in the south) football rules. Also, some kids here see they can make more money persuing a pro career in another sport.

I think Altidore may be on the Tim Howard track... go to Europe with one team but find the stride with another. The only problem is that GKers don't hit their peek until their late 20s to early 30s which is the age most field players (especially attacking players) tend to break down. I hope he can find it soon!!

The kids I coach now are more studious about the game than I ever was. They have more availability with FOX Soccer Channel, Gol TV, etc than i ever had... however, most still do not know about the smaller domestic leagues in Caribbean or South American countries. If I had known there were domestic leagues in places like Jamaica, T&T, Guatelmala, etc, I would have trained harder in college to open up those doors.

bc of college, and living in los angeles, being from El Salvador i know some people around.

If you know about kids interested in trying out in other countries let me know, I may not be the one sending you directly to their coaches but I can help you into the right direction.

My old coach in los angeles used to play for Municipal, one of the best teams in Guatemala.

About Mexico, Central America or even South America I know a few names.

The thing is this, they would ask "what kind of professional" experience the kid has.

Therefore you have to have played the most competitive soccer available in your state, throwing a few famous names in the soccer world could help for references.

Kids here already should be thinking on trying out for the Battery, Railkhawks or other pdl usl teams around.

Bc of the Culture, Uruguay or Argentina could be the best option for SC kids but big Mexican clubs pay really really good, you have to remember though that if the kid is not atleast 6 ft they have to be incredibily skilled or much more stronger than club players down south.

I was an small kid on my club where my senior team has been 14 times national champ, I was way faster than the average player though, marking big tall forwards was easy for me.

I think Costa Rica could be another great option bc of the culture, I think about 90% of Costa Ricans are white, and Im not saying SC kids are gone have a hard time in Ecuador or Jamaica but it could be a little easier.

Teams like Sapprisa, Alajuela, Comunicaciones, Motagua, Olimpia, and My old club Aguila play almost every year the Concacaf Champions League which is pretty good and they will be playing Mexican richest clubs and MLS teams too.